Hadronenes

Hadronenes are a theoretical class of composite particles proposed in extensions of quantum chromodynamics to describe bound states that extend conventional hadrons. In these models, a hadronene is a color-neutral bound object assembled from quarks and gluonic fields in configurations not possible for ordinary mesons or baryons, for example by including an explicit gluonic excitation or an additional constituent that carries color in a confined manner. As a result, hadronenes can exhibit quantum numbers that lie outside the standard meson (quark-antiquark) and baryon (three-quark) patterns, making them a type of exotic hadron.

The proposed internal structure varies by model, but common themes include a valence set of quarks combined with excited gluonic degrees of freedom (hybrid-like), or more complex arrangements protected by color flux tubes. Predicted properties include masses in the hadronic scale, broad or narrow widths depending on allowed decays, and decay channels into lighter hadrons such as pions, kaons, and nucleons. Production mechanisms are typically envisioned in high-energy hadron collisions or heavy-ion environments, where sufficient energy excites the gluonic field.

Status: Hadronenes have not been observed in confirmed experiments to date. They are part of ongoing discussions about the spectrum of exotic hadrons and the ways in which color confinement and gluonic dynamics manifest in bound states. Experimental searches focus on unusual resonances or decays that cannot be easily accommodated by conventional hadron spectroscopy.

See also: exotic hadrons, hybrids, glueballs, tetraquarks, pentaquarks.